Our History and the Christian Connection

Stuart Piggin

Honorary Associate Professor of History, Macquarie University

We Australians are not in danger of losing our Christian heritage. We are in danger of never finding it. Why does that matter? It matters because Christian faith has been the single most important factor in the motivation of many who have done so much to make Australia a worthy member of the world community of nations. It always seeks to make our national conscience equal to its international responsibility. Its effect is to foster moral energy and public-spiritedness. The dynamic altruism or selfless humanity of faith is the major creator of social capital in our country. The health and happiness of our nation is dependent on accessing and using our Christian heritage. The DIDUNO network makes that access easy. Its aim is to produce accounts of individual Australians who have been strongly motivated by their faith, to address the requirements of the national curriculum for reliable information on the Christian contribution, and to provide a bank of documentary sources as evidence of the role of faith in society. This project will become increasingly useful as its coverage of every aspect of society becomes more complete. It will also give young historians an opportunity to put their training into practice as they are commissioned to write more and more material for this website. It is a project worthy of your support and encouragement.